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02-03-2020, 10:03 AM
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#1
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Junior Member
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 6
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3rd party inspection for new motorhome?
Hi,
We are about to buy our first RV. We are purchasing a new 2020 Thor Aria. Is it typical practice to hire someone to inspect the RV prior to purchase for a brand new RV? If so, what does that look like? What type of inspection do we need?What else should we consider doing in the buying process?
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02-03-2020, 02:24 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Monaco Owners Club
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: Orlando, Florida
Posts: 5,819
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Not on a new Coach. You have a warranty.
The important thing to do is to go over all the equipment (try everything) with the Dealership before you drive off - then if you find anything not working you can get a repair scheduled (or have it fixed before you take it off the lot).
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02-03-2020, 03:09 PM
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#3
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Senior Member/RVM #90
Monaco Owners Club
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Columbus, MS
Posts: 54,758
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Hi ! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined the gang!
I've never heard of anyone having a new coach inspected! Have fun and keep her between the ditches!
Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!
__________________
Joe & Annette
Sometimes I sits and thinks, sometimes I just sits.....
2002 Monaco Windsor 40PBT, 2013 Honda CRV AWD
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02-03-2020, 03:26 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Monaco Owners Club
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 6,575
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I agree with Mike and Joe. However I would encourage you to perform an online search for Thor motor home reliability.
__________________
97 Monaco Windsor- Sold
07 Monaco Executive McKinley- Sold
04 Monaco Signature Chateau IV
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02-03-2020, 03:56 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2018
Posts: 609
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Speaking from experience.... I bought from LaMesa in 2018.... Make sure you negotiate with the dealer that you will inspect the coach first and will create a list of items to be repaired or addressed. Then on a separate day you will return to re-inspect that all repairs have been completed then money will exchange hands. I wish I had done this. The day of my final coach walk-thru day and the money and paperwork, for me, was the same day. When I found a few little things, it needed a separate appointment and that took 45 days to complete. LaMesa sucks for service so wherever you are purchasing, don't let something like this happen to you.
They might claim that they could do all the repairs and you could still walk away, so some sort of good faith deposit might be needed to make this happen.
Good Luck!
__________________
1998 Prevost Vogue XL 40' Riveted
500HP Detroit Diesel, side radiator, tag axle, IFS
We have RV'ed in ALL of the lower 48 and into Canada.
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02-03-2020, 04:11 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Fleetwood Owners Club Freightliner Owners Club
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: Houma La
Posts: 161
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New purchase walk thru
I bought a 2018 ( new never titled ) in Jan 2019. Did walk thru with sales service rep and punched items I made. There was no factory qa/qc check list to reference. If I didnt see it it was regarded as acceptable. So not to type forever , today here on Feb 3 one year later it's in the service center for factory warranty repairs. Been in 8 times for at least 25 punched items. If ever again I'd only buy after witnessing every item is as sales said it is.
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02-03-2020, 04:18 PM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Central Indiana
Posts: 1,422
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My experience with Thor products, I would definitely have a very detailed inspection and agreement that all would be repaired before any money is exchanged. My son just had a used motor home inspection done. Cost was $625.00 which he had to pay. He walked away from the deal.
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02-04-2020, 07:46 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 5,378
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CountryB
Not on a new Coach. You have a warranty.
The important thing to do is to go over all the equipment (try everything) with the Dealership before you drive off - then if you find anything not working you can get a repair scheduled (or have it fixed before you take it off the lot).
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I would NOT go the bolded above route. If problems are found, have them repaired before taking delivery. Don't drive the new one off the lot until everything is to your satisfaction.
As far as inspecting, I normally wouldn't consider paying someone to do it, especially on a new rig with a warranty. But I suppose that if it's your first RV ever, it might not be a bad idea to have someone come in to check things out. If you've been around RVs for a while, then you should at least have an inkling of how things work and things to look out for.
__________________
03 Itasca Sunova, Workhorse P32 with the 8.1 and 4L85-E
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02-04-2020, 12:18 PM
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#9
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Senior Member
National RV Owners Club
Join Date: Aug 2017
Location: Madison, In.
Posts: 449
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I would have it inspected. The cost is minimal and you can make them fix the things that get caught on the spot without waiting for service appts as long as the money is in you pocket and not theirs.
I had a new custom built home inspected and found out the HVAC guys had cut a floor joist under the water heater to accommodate their duct work. No one ever would have seen it until the floor started to sag. $400 well spent.
Just my opinion
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02-04-2020, 12:38 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Near Anderson, Indiana
Posts: 668
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I would suggest spending some time looking a different campers and try to find the deficiencies in them. You may have better success looking a used vehicles as they will have wear and tear on them. Look at them with a very critical eye and soon you'll spot almost immediately the flaws. Then, when you look at your camper with a critical eye, you'll know what to look for and where potential future failures could occur.
On a new camper, some of those deficiencies will not unearth until they are driven off the lot. Some things may take several months before you see them. Screws come loose, door don't shut right, frame flexing causes cracks in the walls, or because of bouncing on the road, things break. There's no way to predict that. And they will happen, regardless of how much you pre-inspect a new camper.
I don't think you need to hire anyone to inspect your potential new camper. You do need to be educated yourself. And be willing to walk away from the deal if everything is not to your satisfaction BEFORE you sing the final sales agreement.
But, in order to get YOU started and save yourself some money on a bogus inspector that probably has no clue about anything anyway, here's a web site that has a pretty good "punch list" of items that you should check out throughly at the pre-delivery inspection (PDI). Hope this helps, and saves you some money: Click here.
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2019 Montana High Country 375FL Fifth Wheel
2014 Chevy Silverado 3500 6.6L HD Dually, Long Bed, Crew Cab
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02-04-2020, 12:44 PM
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#11
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Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 64
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jds119
Hi,
We are about to buy our first RV. We are purchasing a new 2020 Thor Aria. Is it typical practice to hire someone to inspect the RV prior to purchase for a brand new RV? If so, what does that look like? What type of inspection do we need?What else should we consider doing in the buying process?
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Have you looked at anything else like a Discovery or another brand in the same price range? Thor literally has the worst quality control in the industry. I've had a palazzo and hurricane, and will never give Thor another penny. You've been warned lol.
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2020 Discovery 38n
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02-04-2020, 05:07 PM
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#12
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: SW Louisiana
Posts: 8,931
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It may not be common practice, but it can certainly be a good idea, keep in mind that a detailed inspection by an NRVIA certified inspector is likely to cost less than 1-2% of the purchase cost of an RV. This will not be a 10-15 minute walk through, this would be 4-6 man hours of constant work for the average RV, maybe 6-10 man hours (inspector plus helper) for a larger diesel pusher.
__________________
2002 Safari Trek 2830 on P32 Chassis with 8.1L w/ 400 watts solar 420Ah LiFePo4
2017 Jeep Cherokee Overland & 2007 Toyota Yaris TOADs with Even Brake,
Demco Commander tow bar and Blue Ox / Roadmaster base plates
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02-12-2020, 09:49 PM
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#13
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Junior Member
Join Date: Dec 2019
Posts: 1
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You should definitely have the unit inspected prior to completing the purchase - even if its new.
As an NRVIA certified level 2 inspector and RVIA/RVDA tech, [moderator edit], I have inspected many new units of all classes. I have yet to inspect a new or used RV that didnt have issues - sometimes life safety issues!
Many dealers limit the time they allow their techs to spend on a PDI, sometimes only a couple of hours! This was told to me directly from the techs themselves.
Hiring a competent, trained inspector working on YOUR behalf would be money well spent. Have any issues discovered during the inspection repaired before you complete the sale and accept delivery.
__________________
NRVIA Certified Level 2 Inspector
RVIA/RVDA Reg. Tech
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02-13-2020, 03:11 AM
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#14
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Rendon, Texas
Posts: 1,460
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As a newby Rv'er, I assume from your post, you would be wise to have it inspected prior to purchase. RV's are being built so fast that oftentimes quality control seems to be lacking. Any salesperson's job is to sell the inventory and get it off the lot, not to tell you about or how to look for the problems with the RV.
Caveat Emptor!
__________________
May your smiles be many and the miles be plenty.
Karen & Allen Van Zandt
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